March 23, 2009

Wonderlic: Stafford (38), Nicks (11)

Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford scored 38 out of 50 on the Wonderlic test at the recent NFL combine, while North Carolina receiver Hakeem Nicks struggled with an 11, according Dan Pompei of the Chicago Tribune.

Two other quarterbacks also did well. USC's Mark Sanchez scored a 28 and Kansas State's Josh Freeman 27.

Outside of Jeremy Maclin of Missouri, who scored 25, several top receiver prospects joined Nicks in the low-score category. Michael Crabtree of Texas Tech had a 15, Darrius Heyward-Bey of Maryland 14 and Percy Harvin of Florida 12.

Pompei writes: "The test result is particularly interesting in the case of Harvin, who will have more learning to do than the others based on the offense he played in at Florida and the fact he could be used in multiple roles."

There were highs and lows among three USC linebackers. Clay Matthews scored 27 and Brian Cushing 23, but Rey Maualuga had a 15. Pompei: "Maualuga's score is slightly troubling considering he likely will be a middle linebacker who is asked to call the defenses."

Maryland corner Kevin Barnes had a fabulous 41 and Western Michigan safety Louis Delmas, who could be the first safety selected, scored 12.

Offensive tackles average the highest scores (26), followed by centers (25), quarterbacks (25), guards (23), tight ends (22), safeties (19), linebackers (19), cornerbacks (18), receivers (17), fullbacks (17) and halfbacks (16). The average score for a player at the combine is 19.

Pat McInally of Harvard is the only player to ever score a 50. Only one out of 100,000 people ace the test.

Stafford's score will no doubt strengthen his position in the NFL draft. Last year, Matt Ryan of Boston College scored a 32 and was the third pick of the first round by the Atlanta Falcons. Joe Flacco of Delaware had a 27 and was the 18th pick of the first round by the Baltimore Ravens. Each had outstanding rookie seasons.

By comparison, USC's John David Booty and Kentucky's Andre Woodson scored 14 when given the test in 2008. Florida's Chris Leak reportedly scored an 8 in 2007, then the score was upgraded to 12. In 2006, Texas' Vince Young reportedly scored a 6, but was given another opportunity and scored 16.

Terry Bradshaw is said to have scored 15 when he took the test in 1970.

Among people of various professions, chemists score an average of 31, journalists 26, clerical workers 21 and warehouse employees 15.

A score under 10 is an indication of literacy problems. Former Iowa State running back Darren Davis reportedly has the lowest score for an NFL prospect, a 4.